Religion Major

Two credits of junior and/or senior colloquium

• REL 3900 - Junior Colloquium
• REL 5900 - Senior Colloquium

Two credits of senior seminar

• REL 5750 - Senior Seminar

Additional Requirements

The low minimum requirement permits students to double major with relative ease, and the department strongly encourages the interdisciplinary perspective that this promotes. For example, we recommend that majors with special interests in biblical studies or theology take ENG 3010/3020: Literary Criticism/Theory, and several of our courses are cross-listed with the anthropology and philosophy departments. Numerous others contribute to such interdisciplinary programs as women’s studies, African-American studies, conflict studies, and social justice. Within the religion major itself, no one specific course is required of everyone, although students are required to take at least one course concentrating in a tradition other than their own.

The department expects all majors to engage in some form of critical independent study, typically in their junior or senior year. This may take the form of independent research within or outside a particular course. Ideally, the research would issue in an honors project. The junior/senior colloquium is especially designed to encourage the development of honors projects.

Opportunities are available for a limited number of majors to fulfill the LEAD requirement by a teaching apprenticeship in the department’s REL 1100: Introduction to Religion course.

Finally, all religion majors will keep a portfolio which will be shared with departmental faculty. The portfolio will include:

1. A bibliography listing the most significant texts read in the major courses, as deemed by the student, plus 4 to 6 of the most significant texts from outside the major
2. Samples of work completed within the major, including a critical review of a piece of literature in religious studies, and a major (e.g., term) paper or project demonstrating textual understanding within an area of special interest
3. A brief essay (or an existing piece of work) explaining how the student’s work in a course or courses outside the major complements their work in religion